Bitcoin flies above $600 on hopes of D.C. blessing, China buzz

Washington D.C.\’s blessing and a Chinese feeding-frenzy: What more could a virtual currency ask for?

Bitcoin was off to the races on Monday, soaring to new highs above $600 — to $618.94 — and last at $610 in choppy trade on Mt. Gox.

Plus, on Monday the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is due to hold a hearing on the challenges law enforcement and regulatory agencies face dealing with bitcoin.

Ahead of that meeting, Bloomberg News reported that the Department of Justice and the SEC are expected to tell a U.S. Senate Committee that bitcoins are are legitimate financial instruments. The virtual currency offers benefits and risks just like any other online-payment system, according to letters released before the hearing:

\”The FBI\’s approach to virtual currencies is guided by a recognition that online-payment systems, both centralized and decentralized, offer legitimate financial services,\” Peter Kadzik, principal deputy assistant attorney general, wrote in a letter on Sunday.

\”Like any financial service, virtual currency system of either type can be exploited by malicious actors, but centralized and decentralized online-payment systems can vary significantly in the types and degrees of illicit financial risk they pose.\”

Some Twitterers were attributing bitcoin\’s price rise to soaring demand out of China. BTC China, the leading bitcoin exchange in that country, recently pushed past Mt. Gox to become the biggest trading platform for the virtual currency. On Monday, BTC China said it got $5 million in funding from LightSpeed China Partners and LightSpeed Venture Partners.

CNBC quoted Bobby Lee, CEO of BTC China, as saying once Asia really starts to move on bitcoin — he noted a Bitcoin Singapore conference held last week and press coverage out of China — it will move big.

I wonder if in a year people would kill for a chance to buy Bitcoin at $600 (today\’s price), & will kick themselves for not buying at $1000

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